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RiskMetrics: a Decent Bet

IPO Comes Just as Bankers
Display Weakness in Field,
And Few Rivals Are Public

Updated Jan. 12, 2008 12:01 a.m. ET

You can't manage what you can't measure. Or so bank executives like to say.

So the initial public offering of stock in RiskMetrics, one of the leading firms in financial risk measurement, looks well-timed, given it has become clear that banks are having trouble measuring their risks themselves. For investors looking for a play on Wall Street's new probity, RiskMetrics' stock will be one of the only games in town.